Vegetable Lasagna is what you make when you want to load up on veggies with something that’s filling, comforting and so moreish, you don’t even think twice about it being Meat Free!
This incredible Vegetarian Lasagna is made with a creamy ricotta and spinach filling as well as layers of roasted vegetables and a homemade tomato lasagna sauce. It’s one of my favourite fridge clean out recipes because it can be made with just about any roastable veggies!
Why you’ll love this Vegetable Lasagna
It is hard to top an epic, meat lasagna made with layers of slow cooker ragu, béchamel sauce and oodles of cheese. But if there’s anything that can give it a run for its money, it’s this Vegetarian Lasagna. Here’s why you’ll love this so much:
Roasted Vegetables – Roasting trumps stove sautéing when it comes to bringing out flavour in vegetables;
Jar Roasted Red Peppers – with a touch of smokiness and sweetness, this is an optional extra that I love to add because it adds that extra special touch;
Customisable – use whatever roast-able veggies you please;
Spinach and Ricotta layer – It just takes this over the top! But it’s optional – you could easily just double up with another layer of roasted vegetables;
Simple homemade lasagna sauce – skip the jar, this homemade tomato sauce is simple and so good!
Cheese – goes without saying that melty cheese is all part of a great lasagna experience!
How to make Veggie Lasagna
There are a few components to putting together a Veggie Lasagna so we love that it makes a BIG batch and that it reheats 100% perfectly!
Roast vegetables;
Mix up ricotta and spinach;
Make the simple tomato lasagna sauce;
Layer the lasagna as follows:
Smear tomato on base (to stop lasagna sheets from sliding)
Top with lasagna sheets
Roasted vegetables
Some tomato pasta sauce plus cheese
Another layer of lasagna sheets
Spinach and ricotta filling for lasagna
Top with lasagna sheets and pasta sauce
Sprinkle with cheese. Ready to bake!
Vegetarian Lasagna ingredients – vegetables
Roasted Vegetables
I used pumpkin, zucchini and onion as my roasted veggies, but feel free to use whatever you have / want. Anything roastable is fine, just chop it so it cooks in the same time.
I cut mine pretty chunky because otherwise they cook too quickly in the oven – I like to roast veggies for at least 20 minutes minimum to get the maximum benefit of caramelisation.
Roasted Red Peppers
My “special ingredient” – Roasted Red Peppers! Basically, it’s capsicum / bell peppers that have been fire roasted so they have that gorgeous smokey flavour.
It’s sweet, soft and slippery and it adds an awesome extra dimension to this lasagna. Yep, I take the easy route and buy it in a jar but if you’re a keen bean, make your own!
Vegetable lasagna is sensational served fresh out of the oven, but it’s also one of those dishes that are terrific the next day. The flavour of those roasted veggies and that spinach ricotta layer develop overnight, and just a quick reheat in the microwave is all that’s required to bring it back to the original molten state.
So, fellow Carnivores. Have I convinced you to give this a go??? 😜 – Nagi x
My favourite Meat-Free Comfort Foods
Chickpea Potato Curry – big curry flavours made with pantry staple spices!
Browse the Vegetarian recipes collection
Vegetable Lasagna
Watch how to make it
Sometimes it helps to have a visual, so watch me make this Vegetarian Lasagna recipe!
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Vegetable Lasagna
Ingredients
Roasted Vegetables (Note 1):
- 500 g / 1 lb pumpkin , 2cm / 4/5″ cubes
- 2 large zucchinis , cut into 2cm / 4/5″ chunks
- 2 onions (any type) , cut into wedges
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 garlic clove , minced
- Salt and pepper
Spinach Ricotta:
- 250 g / 8 oz frozen chopped spinach , thawed
- 500 g / 1 lb ricotta (Note 2)
- 1/2 cup / 50 g grated parmesan (or 3/4 cup shredded cheese)
- 1 egg
- 1 garlic clove , minced
- 1/8 tsp grated nutmeg, optional (fresh or powder)
- 1/2 tsp each Salt and pepper
Sauce:
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 small onion , finely chopped (any, I use brown)
- 700 g / 24 oz tomato passata (Note 3)
- 400 g / 14 oz crushed tomato
- 1/2 cup / 125 ml water
- 3/4 tsp each dried thyme and oregano (or basil, parsley)
- 1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes (can omit / adjust to taste)
- Salt and pepper
Lasagna:
- 330g / 11 oz jar roasted red pepper strips, drained (Note 4)
- 375 g / 13 oz fresh lasagne sheets (Note 5)
- 300 g / 3 cups shredded mozzarella (or MORE!)
Instructions
Roasted Vegetables:
- Preheat oven to 200C/390F.
- Place vegetables on the tray, drizzle with oil, sprinkle with garlic, salt and pepper. Toss.
- Roast for 25 minutes, turning at 15 minutes, until tender and browned.
- Remove from oven, loosen from tray with spatula while warm (can stick when cools).
Sauce:
- Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and onion, cook for 3 minutes until golden.
- Add passata, crushed tomato, water, dried herbs, chilli, salt and pepper. Stir. Simmer on medium low heat for 20 minutes. Adjust salt at the end. *Add a teeny touch of sugar if it’s a bit sour, depends on quality of tomatoes used.*
- Remove from stove and let cool for 5 minutes before using.
Ricotta Mixture:
- Place ingredients in a bowl and mix until combined.
Lasagna:
- Preheat oven to 160C/320F.
- Spread a ladle of tomato sauce on the base of a large baking dish (Note 5).
- Cover with lasagna sheets, tearing as required to fit.
- Top with roasted vegetables, scatter over red peppers. Spoon over 2 1/2 cups of Sauce, then sprinkle with half the cheese.
- Cover with lasagna sheets. Spread over Ricotta mixture.
- Cover with lasagna sheets. Pour over remaining sauce and sprinkle with remaining cheese.
- Bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until the cheese is golden. If using dried lasagna sheets, stick a knife in the middle to ensure it’s cooked – if it needs longer, cover and stick it back in the oven.
- Rest for 5 minutes before cutting and serving. Store leftovers per notes – brilliant reheated!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
This Vegetarian Lasagna recipe was originally published February 2018. Updated for housekeeping matters. No change to recipe – I wouldn’t dare!
Life of Dozer
Whenever I go away, I never pack until the night before. Because the sight of a suitcase reduces Dozer to this:
Nagi, I’m pleasantly surprised how good this dish was!!!! I made this for my Vegetarian friend yesterday. She loved it and I loved it too! I was one of those people who thought lasagna without meat was “ridiculous”… But you proved me wrong…. I will definitely be making this again!!!!! Oh and I added mushrooms to the mix, soooo good. Thank you once again!
Oh I hear you Angie! 🙂 I’m glad this met your carnivore standards – I LOVE that! N x
For the sauce, am I reading it right that it is one whole garlic going in, or is it just supposed to be a clove?
1 clove 🙂 Thanks for that, will fix!
Hi there I really want to make this today then cook
It for a dinner party tomorrow – so rest overnight uncooked in the fridge. I’m in Australia so tend to use the no cook dried lasagne sheets. I’m thinking this should be fine to make ahead so long as it’s fully covered in the fridge and then just add slightly to the cooking time to account for the fridge effect?
Sorry I missed this message, I wasn’t working this weekend. With the dry sheets, I don’t recommend making ahead without cooking, the dry sheets will suck up all the liquid. I would cook it then reheat, it reheats great!
Hi Nagi
I am making my this tonight for a group of 10.
Would it be alright to make late afternoon and then cook later? I’m concerned it may lose its consistency (dry up) if I let it sit for a couple hours before cooking.
T
Hi Dana! You’re right to be concerned, the lasagna sheets will soak up liquid while it’s sitting around 🙂 Just add an extra 1/2 cup of water into the sauce so there’s slightly more, that way you’re giving the sheets something to absorb while leaving enough for the lasagna itself. Also, be sure to assemble white the veggies are fresh out of the oven because then they’ll steam inside the lasagne while it’s waiting to be cooked. 🙂 And cover straight away after assembling! N x
Yum, yum and YUM! This was soooo good, i actually ate it 4 days in a row. Thank you!
I love this recipe!! Thanks for sharing.
You’re so welcome Tracy! N xx
I’m trying to serve more plant based meals so was looking for a hearty vegetarian recipe for my meat-loving husband. This was a huge hit!! I made the lasagna this morning and popped it in the oven in time for dinner. I think I could make this on a weekend and wait a few days to put it in the oven for a quick weeknight dinner. I roasted butternut squash, red onion and zucchini – this tasted amazing all on it’s own! The roasting took a but longer – about 35 minutes to get a nice caramelization. I didn’t have passata on hand (I actually had to look it up – not something we have in the US) so I used diced tomatoes and then tossed the sauce mixture in the blender to smooth it out. This makes a huge amount – I was able to make a large pan for my family and gave a smaller one to my parents to take home to cook (I figure they cooked for me for decades, so it’s time to return the favor!). This is the first recipe I’ve made from this site, but I’m super excited to try more!
I made this and it tasted great. However, there was so much liquid in the bottom of the dish, when I served it. What could I have done wrong. I roasted the veggies, and made the sauce per the recipe. I did think the sauce was a little runny. Any hints?
Thanks
Hi Sherie! It does sound like your sauce may have been too watery, did you see the video which shows how thick my sauce is when it finished cooking?? 🙂 N xx
Hi, Sorry, I did not watch before I made it. I just watched now, and I think my sauce was the culprit. It was not thick enough. Well, that just means I will have to make it again. My husband loves any type of pasta. Thanks so much for responding. I also love your Dozer pics, being that I have 2 dogs myself.
I’ve been making meat-based and vegetarian lasagnas since the 8th grade (so, um, awhile now) and this one is the all-time winner. We happily fed the birthday girl (also a drama queen), her carnivorous husband, a vegetarian teenager, and a pre-teen boy who generally regards vegetables as poison. (I did have boxed mac n cheese at the ready, just in case).
Here are my subs. I couldn’t find quality ricotta so went with a local 4% cottage cheese instead. We roasted cauliflower, onion, zucchini and fennel, and tossed a serrano pepper onto the roasting pan. Then it was finely chopped and added to the tomato sauce. And then at the very last it seemed not quite cheesy enough so we shredded some Havarti and tossed that on top with the final mozza layer.
You know that hush at dinner when folks stop talking and just start eating and enjoying? Ya, like that. Everyone had seconds! Thank you for this, and all your amazing recipes. Your *Notes* are exceptional, too; so valuable to understand the *why* of things.
LOVE HEARING THAT Christopher!!! Great to hear cottage cheese worked great too! 🙂 N xx
Hi Nagi! Have made this before and its such a hit!!! Best lasagna ever! But tomorrow I am making it for a group of friends, one who is gluten free. Do you think it would be fine if I used fresh lasagna sheets for 3/4 of the lasagna, and then gluten free instant dried sheets for 1/4? Let me know if you think that would work okay with the cooking times etc? 🙂 Thanks!! 😀
Hi Laura – so glad you love this too! That will be fine, no change to recipe (but check GF lasagna sheet pack re: cooking directions, does it need pre cooking?). What I do (don’t laugh!) is stick skewers in to mark where the GF sheets start 🙂 Or toothpicks. Soak the skewers before doing that! N x
Amazing! So Delicious! Very refreshing Vegetarian Lasagna! Nice to have a break from meat from time to time 🙂
Thankyou x
That’s so great to hear Cathy! Thank you for letting me know you enjoyed it! N x
Morning Nagi,
My next door neighbour gave me a large Queensland Blue pumpkin on Saturday so I thought I’d give this recipe a go. Really pleased I did.
I forgot to add the Thyme (which I bought specifically) but it was gorgeous and massive. I also found that my veggies (pumpkin, onion, carrot and zucchini) needed longer to roast.
Another winner. I now have a folder on my email inbox just for your recipes. Keep them coming!
That’s so great to hear John! Thanks! N x ❤️
Your vege lasagna was a great sucess with my lunch visitors who asked for the recipe.
I was not able to buy Ricotta cheese here in Spain so I used all Mozzerela and Cheddar on the top.
We had our first lunch of the season in the garden!
Love your receipes.
I’m so pleased you enjoyed this Tessa! Thanks for taking the time to let me know! N x
I am making this tonight. It looks delicious. I will let you know how it turned out. I made your red curry paste and the red curry chicken recipe. I will say it had amazing depth of flavor. But the chili’s I got were super spicy. I would use less chili’s or perhaps a different red chili. Can’t wIt to try it again. All of your recipes are so amazing.
Bugger the chillies were too spicy but glad you loved it still!!!! Hope you love this lasagna! N xx
This was, hands down, the best lasagne I’ve ever made, and I’m nowhere near a vegetarian! Followed the recipe pretty much exactly (possibly slightly more cheese, whoops) and seriously fantastic result. The combination of sweet roasted vegies and the spinach and ricotta layer is just fantastic. Two carnivore teenage boys and husband all ate it happily which is a first – husband is quite well trained but one of my boys still thinks ‘green is poison’! Definitely a winner and I will be making again for sure. Thanks again, Nagi.
You made my morning Tracey! N x ❤️
This recipe is amazing!!! Love this so much. Better than any meat lasagna!
Love hearing that! So glad you enjoyed this Laura! N xx
Also I have just counted.. I have made 14 of your recipes so far! And every one has been a 10/10! My mission is to make a new one everytime I cook 🙂 Thankyou for your fabulous recipes Nagi!
You made my morning! N x
Hi Nagi,
Discovered you (recipetin eats) while looking for corn fritter recipes. ADDICTED EVER SINCE!😁😁😁
This lasagna recipe IS TRULY SCRUMPTIOUS!!!!!!
Thanks so much for sharing this. The whole family loved it.
HUGS TO DOZER
So glad you found me Josie! And HIGH FIVE on the lasagna! YESSSS! N xx PS Hugs will be passed on to giant fur ball as soon as I get home from my travels! N x
Nagi, I can’t find the béchamel sauce in the recipe! Otherwise, it looks so yummy!
Hi Lexie! No bechamel sauce in this one! 🙂 N xx
Hello Nagi,
I’ve just discovered you, as well. This sounds so very tempting I decided to make it my first effort of your recipes based on the (made me salivate) photos. Only thing is, I’m am not a fan of red pepper flavor and am wondering about it coming through distinctly in this dish. I’d have just eliminated them but you made the point of how much they add, so am hesitant. Any insight would be appreciated.
Cheers,
Laurie
Hi Laurie! I’m so glad you like the look of this recipe! I know what you mean about red pepper flavour, it has a very distinct flavour when raw or cooked to tender crisp. You’ll find the flavour of char grilled peppers sold in jars much more mild in terms of red pepper flavour. The dominant flavours are the sweetness and char grilled flavour. With everything else in the lasagna it is not a dominant ingredient or flavour but I truly think it’s worth using it because even my friends noticed there was “something different” when I made a version without it. They didn’t know what was different, but they just picked that it was different! 🙂 N x
Thank you so much for your reply, Nagi. I appreciate the information. I’m making this for dinner tonight!
Sensational! Tried this recipe with the family last night and it was voted as the best veg. lasagne ever. Many thanks once again.
PS. Hope you’re enjoying Japan.
Woah! HIGH PRAISE!!! So glad everyone enjoyed it, thanks for letting me know Alison! N x